Gassett’s department had come under heightened scrutiny in recent years over concerns about spending and personnel decisions. The Office of Inspector General in the Kentucky Cabinet for Public Protection is conducting an investigation, and a legislative committee concluded its own review last month.

Gassett, a biologist with a Ph.D., came to the agency in 1999 and oversaw the state’s program to reintroduce elk to eastern Kentucky.

Ray says deputy commissioner Benjy Kinman would become the interim head of the agency.